It just doesn't seem right for a candidate for public office to use campaign funds to pay a parking ticket. If the person got the ticket, the person should pay for it out of their own personal account and not their campaign finance fund.
According to the Ohio Secretary of State's website on campaign finance, Jon Husted, the Republican candidate for Secretary of State, used his campaign funds to pay his ($25) parking ticket on 10/16/2009 to the City of Columbus. He did pay another ticket ($100) to the Heath Photo Enforcement Program for another traffic violation on 8/29/09.
Of course, since I've never been a candidate for public office, I just don't know what is kosher and what is not. Do you think it is okay for a candidate to pay for a car out of his campaign funds? Husted did. He paid $17,090 on 7/13/09 to Beau Townsend Ford in Vandalia, Ohio, for an "automobile." (I'd like to know what kind of Ford you can get for that price. Somehow I can't imagine Husted driving a Ford Focus.) The next day, 7/14/09, he paid $340.97 out of his campaign fund for his auto insurance to State Farm. Is it okay to do this? (I've added this information from the Husted for Ohio expenditure page from the Ohio Secretary of State.)
| BEAU TOWNSEND FORD INC | | | 1020 WEST NATIONAL ROAD | VANDALIA | OH | 45377 | 2009 | 500 | 07/13/2009 | | 17090.04 | AUTOMOBILE | HUSTED FOR OHIO |
| STATE FARM AUTO INSURANCE | | | PO BOX 588002 | NORTH METRO | GA | 30029 | 2009 | 500 | 07/14/2009 | | 340.97 | AUTO INSURANCE | HUSTED FOR OHIO |
If you'd like to explore more of Husted's or any other candidate's expenditures, visit the public information at the Ohio Secretary of State's website and look for campaign finance and expenditures. You'll get to see how the other half lives.